A Viewer asks: I'd like to get a good used car without going in the poor house! We have 3 school-aged children. Our '91 Ford pickup doesn't have room for them. I wanted to spend $5,000 or less and don't want car payments. Do you have any ides where to look besides the newspaper? ~ Kevin S.

Buying a good used car is much easier now than it used to be. Cars last longer and there's much more information available. As long as Kevin has enough time and is willing to research he should be able to find something that works for his family. Finding the right car isn't just a matter of where you look, but rather knowing what you're looking for.

He'll want to start by finding out what models are available in his price range. At this point it's not a matter of looking for any specific car. Just getting a feel for what's out there. One way to do that is to check one of the websites that lists used cars.

For instance, Cars.com will allow you to search within your price range and local area. We found a number of Honda Accords from 1990-1992 listed. Also, some Dodge Caravans from 1993 and 1994. Those are just a couple of popular examples. Obviously there are many models to consider. It takes a little time to try each one, but within an hour Kevin can get a good idea of what models are available in his price range.

Once you have some makes and models in mind, pick the right vehicle for your needs. Consider how you use your car. If you have five people in your family, you probably don't need a van that carries seven. The same thing with towing and hauling capacity. If you buy more vehicle than you need, you'll spend more now and drive up your operating costs, too.

Next, it's time to narrow the field again. Eliminating cars with a reputation for bad repair records is a good way to do that. Naturally Kevin can check Consumer Reports. On the web, he could try TheAutoReport.com.

It's possible that the year and model you can afford will be too old to be listed on current reliability reports. If that's the case, see if your library has a Consumer Report that's a few years old. Obviously the information will be out of date. But it should give you an idea of the general reliability of that model in your selected year.

The quality on most cars continues to improve. That means that you're more likely to find a reliable older car. Unfortunately, cars are also much more complicated now. So it's harder for the average buyer to evaluate any specific car. It's also true that much of today's reliability is due to the use of sophisticated systems. If they should breakdown, the resulting repair bill could be expensive.